And Suddenly!
by GreySocks
Summary: "I'm dreaming of one kiss from you to last me for the rest of my life."
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own Mai Hime**

The force of impact landed on the jaw of Natsuki. The strength behind the constant punches on her person created a moment of blindness and confusion. She felt her captor behind her keeping a firm grip on her arms, prevented her from defending or retaliating. Natsuki looked through one eye as the other was blinded by blood. She saw as her attacker's fist drew back once more to land on her face. 'No more.' She snarled as she landed a kick into her attacker's groin. The man kneeled over while whimpering in pain. Taking the advantage, Natsuki jerked herself away from her captor, who was in shock, and spun around to land a mighty upper cut to the man's unexpecting chin. The man flew backwards and hit his head rather hard on the brick wall behind him. Natsuki never allowed one moment of hesitation as she turned toward the man cussing as he tried to stand and attack her once more.

Balling her right hand into a fist, she slammed it into the man's nose. She heard the satisfying sound of the bone break. Spinning around, she delievered a roundhouse kick to the man's face sending him flying to toward the dumpster. Hearing the sound of the other man behind her getting up, she headed toward him. The man managed to get on his knees just as Natsuki stood in front of him. Faster than a blink of an eye, Natsuki slammed her knee against the man's neck. Her hands darted out to grab his collar and repeatly rammed his head against the brick wall finding blood making a pattern against the rough surface. Seeing that the man was knocked out, she let him go and turned toward the other unconscious man. 'They never learn.' She left the alley as dawn was breaking through.

* * *

A large crowd of students flooded the courtyard in front of school chatting amongst themselves. One girl stood at the side looking at her watch then over the crowd. Her foot tapped the concrete floor signifying her impatience as she bit her lower lip. 'Come on, where are you?' She glanced at her watch once more. It was almost time and yet no sign. The bell rang and the courtyard quickly emptied. The girl sighed as she took one last look around before starting her trek to her class. As she started walking up the stairs, a hand landed upon her shoulder, "NATSUKI!" the girl twirled around placing her hand upon her chest to still her racing heart. "Why do you keep sneaking up on me like that?" She demanded.

"Mai-"

"OH MY GOD, WHAT HAPPENED?" Mai interrupted when she noticed the appearance of her best friend.

"Don't worry about it." Natsuki shrugged.

"What am I going to do with you? Was this why you were late?"

"Mai, you're going to be late if you keep talking." Natsuki didn't want to explain her night to her mother-like friend. 'I wasn't going to show up because I knew this would happen, but Mai would be even more worried and call me constantly until I saw her.'

Mai gave her look that told Natsuki that the conversation was not over, "Fine, let's go." Natsuki started to walk down the stairs when Mai called out, "Aren't you going to class?"

"No."

"You're here, you might as well. Why come to school if you had no plans on attending class?"

"Mai, I'm busy."

"Natsuki Kuga." Mai's voice dropped as she placed her hands on her hips. Natsuki knew that tone, it was the tone Mai always used when it meant she was in trouble. Not wanting to get into another fight, Natsuki changed direction and followed Mai. Mai's expression was one of victory. "You know, you should at least wear the school's uniform. You will only get into more trouble."

"Mai, give it a rest." Natsuki ran her fingers through her hair. She could already feel a headache building and the idea of her appearance would cause a disturbance with her teacher only intensified it.

* * *

Natsuki looked herself in the mirror for the first time today and saw why Mai's reaction was so severe. It wasn't as if she never been in fights before, but she usually skipped class so it never was that big of a deal. Her right eyebrow was cut open and some blood dried in an ugly mass over it with some of her hair matted with it. Her lip was bruised and cut and her eye was swollen. Her hands were a bloody mess with scrapes and open wounds, Natsuki looked at her clothes that revealed torn and unkept material. She turned on the faucet and plundged her hands under the flowing water. She hissed slightly at the stinging sensation. 'I'm amazed I wasn't kicked out of class.' She thought.

She cupped her hands to get a good amount of water then splashed her face a few times to get the sweat and blood off. Looking back up to the mirror, she saw the cuts on her face were looking better. One more splash and she turned the water off. Grabbing her hoodie tail, she dried her hands and face off. She looked a little more presentable not that she cared, but it should do enough for the teachers to stop annoying her. She looked at her rumpled clothes. Her black pants needed to be replaced, it had holes in them and beginning to fray quite a bit. Her dark blue hoodie hiding underneath her school's vest looked as if it needed to be washed. Combing her fingers through her hair a few times, she gave a satisfied nod and left the bathroom.

Deciding if she would head back to class or not, she stuffed her hands into her pockets and walked the campus. By the time she decided, school was almost over. So far, Natsuki had not seen the person she had come to school for. She glanced at her watch and saw that it was almost that time. She made her way to her destination. Finding the familiar tree in front of the school building, she jumped and pulled herself up on a branch. She made her way to the other side of the tree and gazed through the window opposite of her. There was a near empty room situationed across from her. Natsuki felt her heart speed up at the sight of the person inside.

A beautiful girl sat at her desk typing on her laptop. Natsuki knew who this person was the moment she saw her, it was the Student Class President. The girl at first annoyed her greatly because of her position and the type of person she personafied. Natsuki hated Mary Sues and Shizuru Fujino was one of the biggest she had ever seen. Everything this girl does seem to scream perfection. Shizuru seemed to be the poster child of every parent's dream come true.

She was filthy rich, gorgeous, calm, collected, intelligent, witty, charming, athletic, and had everyone eating out of the palm of her hand. This girl could do no wrong in the eyes of the public. She even had fan clubs named after her that consisted of both genders! What made the matter worse was that she was dating a guy that seemed to be cut from the exact same mold as she and he was the Student Class Vice President. They were the absolute perfect couple. They always drank tea!

Natsuki could never understand their facsination over the beverage. It wasn't that good. 'I guess it is because she was raised in a traditional home that tea is the only acceptable drink allowed other than water.' Natsuki had never seen the woman drink anything but the two liquids. Unknown to Natsuki, she had no idea why she found this girl so intriguing. She hated their types, yet that one time they met face to face for the first time seemed to have changed that. Shaking her head, Natsuki rid herself of reminencing. She tightened her hold on the tree as she walked a little around the trunk to get a better look. The girl was once again taking a sip from her cup just as the door to the room opened.

Members of the student class filed in and taking their respected seats. Shizuru stood up from her seat and begun talking. Natsuki wished she could hear the girl's voice. She leaned a bit closer as to remain hidden but close enough to see Shizuru easier. The girl really was breathtaking in every sense of the word. Natsuki's eyes never strayed away from the beauty. Before Natsuki knew it, the meeting was adjoured and nearly everyone left the room. A few stayed behind to have a few more words then only one stayed behind with the president. Natsuki felt her teeth clench. It was Shizuru's boyfriend. Reito walked over to Shizuru and sat on the edge of her desk while Shizuru took her seat. They chatted for a good bit and laughed.

Natsuki wondered what could they be talking about that would cause Shizuru to laugh. It was rare to see Shizuru allow herself to act without any type of guard and Reito was one of the very select few who was allowed to see it. Jealousy saturated Natsuki's emotions. Natsuki wanted to hate this guy so much, but she could not bring herself to do it. Despite the fact that Reito was dating the object of her affections, he made Shizuru truely happy. Whenever they were together, Shizuru's expression would soften and her tone of voice seemed to have changed slightly different. Of course, she always seemed to have this reaction whenever she was amongst friends.

The two seemed to be getting quite comfortable with one another as Reito leaned in Shizuru's direction. Natsuki's fingers dug deeply into the bark of the tree that it crumbled under the pressure. Natsuki's scabs on her knuckles cracked open and blood escaped from its prison. Natsuki leaned in just as Shizuru leaned toward Reito. 'No!' Natsuki's heart cried out. Natsuki placed her foot on a small branch, the branch groaned under the weight. Putting more of her weight on the branch, Natsuki wasn't paying attention when the branch under her foot cracked. A web of splintered wood laced around the branch weakening it. The couple seemed to stop a few inches away from each other as to whisper sweet nothingness to one another.

Natsuki wanted to scream to stop the intimate moment. She placed more weight on the branch to stand on it when the branch finally gave in and broke completely. Natsuki's eyes widened greatly when she felt herself tipping foreward. Thankfully, she had quick reflexes, her hand grabbed onto another branch but only her fingertips managed to wrap themselves around the branch. Her body screamed at her because it could not maintain the weight. She was about to take a better grip of the branch when she heard the window opening. She let go and felt herself hitting branch after branch before slamming into the hard ground.

The air was knocked out of her body as she struggled to feet and ran into the shadows of the building. She pressed her back against the wall as she heard voices above her talking about the disturbance outside. She held her breath as the two could not figure out the reasoning behind loud sound and why branches littered the school ground. After what seemed like an hour, the window closed and the voices were cut off. Natsuki let out her breath only to regret it as her ribs ached. Holding her side, she felt as if she may have broken a rib or two.

* * *

Nursing her wounds, Natsuki sat on her sofa while giving up on the bandages. 'What a day!' She shook her head. She glanced around her near bare studio apartment. The only furniture she possessed was a sofa-turned-bed, desk, and chair. She rarely was at her place to really have any luxeries. On the floor was bandages and alcohol, she leaned back on her sofa and looked ahead of her blank wall. She turned her eyes to her desk which sat upon it a desktop computer. She made her way to it. Turning on the monitor, she typed in the website she was well familiar with. She took a deep breath as she was automatically signed in. She clicked on her profile to see if she had received any messages.

She always thought such a thing was a waste of time, but it was something she was forced to do because of school and Mai. Her assignment was to upload a blog on the school's intranet and all this blah about keeping a personal diary and stuff. Natsuki made an alias so she wouldn't have to worry about anyone bothering her. She had to write in it once a week to talk about her feelings. She rolled her eyes at the project, 'This is stupid.' She huffed. So far, no one has bothered her on here. She was used to seeing no private messages and it only made her happier. No one PMing her meant no need to add more to this ridiculous assignment. As for her diary, she only wrote a few sentences. No point in going into long descriptive details on how her life is going in the week.

Besides, she doubts anyone ever reads her blogs in the first place. Who wants to read about how she had to fight every night to stay alive on the streets. Sure she attended school, but it wasn't her choice. She would have dropped out, but her dead parents last request was for her to finish school and get into college. Despite her relunctance, she loved her parents that she would honor their wish. She had been known for getting into constant trouble outside of school and inside, but she kept her grades up. She found the subjects she had to take were boring. She knew the material and rarely had to study to keep her grades from slipping. It also helped that Mai kept on her to not skip school too much.

Her stomach growled notifying the owner to eat. Natsuki got up from her chair and made her way to the small kitchen. She opened the fridge to find inside it nearly bare. One bottle of rum and a Chinese carton rested inside. She grabbed the carton and opened the lid. She almost threw it out of her hand when she took a whiff of the moldy substance. "I guess Chinese is out of the question." She threw the carton away. She tore open the cabnets finding them empty. Her stomach growled angrily at her for forgetting to feed it. She placed her hand on her stomach, 'It's been yesterday since I last ate.' She headed for her wallet to find it held nothing inside. 'Oh well, I guess I'll just have to wait until I get paid again.' She headed back to her computer.

She sat down once more and clicked on the tab to write her weekly blog. She wrote about how hungry she was and that she really should consider heading for the supermarket. She was about to submit when she figured to place one more entry before completing the blog. 'I'm craving for some pho.' She hit the submit button and exited the page and turned off the monitor. Her stomach would not stop complaining that she felt herself getting annoyed. "I don't have any money so quiet down." She argued knowing how stupid it must look that she was talking to her stomach. She looked at her watch seeing that it was almost time for work. She shed off her school clothes and put on fitted jeans and a dark grey tank top. Placing her hair up in a ponytail, she grabbed her keys and headed for her bike.

* * *

Exhausted, Natsuki clocked out of work. Running her hand over her tired face to keep herself from falling asleep. It was well after three in the morning, she made her way to her bike to find a gang of guys surrounding it. She narrowed her eyes as she strode toward them. "Get away." Her voice left no room for arguing. The boys turned toward her. She tightened her hands into fists waiting for them to make the first move. She guess it was her own fault for working and living in a dangerous part of town, but she was unable to afford a place anywhere else as well as finding a job. Her job was working in the warehouse to place equipment into delivery trucks.

"You own this bike?" One of the guys couldn't believe it. Natsuki felt her temper rising at an increased rate; she had heard the same thing over and over in her mind and frankly she was tired of it.

"Get away." She repeated coldly.

"Don't be so rude, little girl." The same guy had a confident grin on his face. He nodded to his four buddies; they begun to surround her.

Natsuki knew there was no point in talking to them any longer. She was exhausted, hungry, and her body was aching. She wanted to just sleep. She closed her eyes to allow her dry eyes to moisten a bit then opened them. She took a more defensive stance. The boy that seemed to be the leader of the group walked up to her. He reached out to touch her face when she grabbed his wrist with her thumb pressing against a pressure point on his palm. Shock washed his face as he fought against her strength. He found his arm being pulled down by this mere girl. Natsuki kept her facial expression neutral as she pulled his arm back causing the boy to lean back. Without warning, she jerked his hand all the way back, hearing the sound of the bone snapping.

The boy's howl of pain echoed in the night. The other guys watched in surprise. "Kill her!" The leader screamed. Natsuki grabbed the leader's head inbetween her hands and brought her knee up into the boy's face. She then turned to the advancing members coming at her. She felt a presence behind her that she ducked then swept her foot to trip one of them on the street. She then pushed off her left foot and sprung upward with her fist aimed at another boy's chin causing him to fly backward. Not breaking momentum, she swiftly moved to another boy and grabbed his shirt. She manuevered her body to bend against his body and threw him at the other approaching boy. As she righted herself, she found that three of the boys were getting up including the leader.

The guys seemed to of had enough of her that they drew out knives. 'Great. Just what I fucking need!' She gritted her teeth. She backed up. The other two guys started to untangle themselves from each other and got to their feet. She stopped and had resumed a stance readying for a fight. "Kuga! Don't suppose you would like some help." A voice behind her caused Natsuki to smirk.

"As long as you don't get in my way." She responded. Footsteps had gotten closer and stopped next to her, a man held a metal bat against his shoulder as another stepped on the other side of her cracking his knuckles. "What took you guys so long?"

"You know how Takeda can be. He was too busy looking at himself in the mirror." The older man remarked as he flexed his fingers.

"You're one to talk, Yamada, you were baby talking to your wife." Takeda retorted while patting the bat against his open hand.

"As much as I love hearing you two women bantering, how about you help me clean up this mess." Natsuki smirked. The gang started to noticed that the numbers were no longer in their favor. The leader snarled at Natsuki as he cradled his broken arm.

"GET THEM!" Natsuki merely rolled her eyes at the redundant speech as the group of men ran toward them. Natsuki allowed a joyous smile fall upon her face as she ran to meet them.

* * *

Huffing, Natsuki wiped her bloody chin with her arm as she looked over at the two guys catching their own breath. Five unconscious bodies laid on the street. "You okay, old man?" She looked over at Yamada leaning against the wall. He sported a nasty cut on his arm and some bruises on his face. He tried to chuckle but he grabbed his ribs.

"I'll live. What about you, kid?"

"I'm all right. Takeda, you okay?" She turned to the young man who leaned against the bat. He turned to give her a reassuring smile.

"Nothing I can't handle." He straightened up. He looked pretty beaten as well. "You look like you have the worse of it though." He commented.

Natsuki had received a deep cut on her stomach when she underestimated the distance of one of the guy's arm and the knife in his hand. She merely shrugged it off while her hand remained against the wound. She felt her body about to collapse from lack of rest and food, but she willed herself to remain strong. She hated the idea of looking weak in front of anyone. Her body was a museum of battle wounds and it would appear to hold more scars from tonights battle. Her wounds from yesterday reopened that made her appearance look worse than it was. Blood seeped into her eye as the cut on her eyebrow was open again along with another fresh wound nearby. "It looks worse than it is. Yamada, you had better leave before your wife kills you." She heard the sound of Yamada's cell ringing.

"Right. See you later." He stumbled off to his car. Takeda kept his eyes on Natsuki with concern.

"You sure you're all right?"

"Don't worry about me, Takeda. I'm starting to think that maybe Yamada was right about you." She saw the young man's face flame up.

"Whatever."

"You worry like an old woman. I'm tougher than I look." She pulled her hand away from her wound and masked the pain she felt. "Thanks for the help, see you!" She turned to her bike. Takeda watched as she peeled out and out of sight. He sighed before making his way to his car.

* * *

Natsuki dragged herself inside her apartment. Her hand held tightly over her stomach wound as she felt fresh blood spready on her shirt. She gingerly sat down against her couch and laid back. She lifted up her tank top only to stop as the fabric stuck to her open wound. 'Damn!' She slowly peeled it off causing her vision to become blurred. Swallowing back a gasp, Natsuki gave up the slow procedure and ripped the tank up. Her eyes watered and she sucked in her breath. Her stomach muscles clenched at the jerk, Natsuki took several deep breaths to keep herself calm as she closed her eyes waiting for the throbbing to lesson.

Pulling the tank all the way off her, she tossed it aside as she looked down at the angry wound marked on her abdomen. 'This is bad.' She thought as she tore her eyes away from it. Looking at her watch, she noted it was almost time for her to get to school. She reached down to grab the bandages and alcohol. She gritted her teeth knowing how much this was going to hurt. She first took several swallows of the alcohol before soaking one of the bandages with it. Taking numerous deep breaths, she pushed the bandage on her stomach. The feel of the alcohol soaked bandage touching her stomach nearly made Natsuki scream out profanties to the entire neighborhood.

She clenched her eyes shut and concentrated on not screaming. Her hold on the bottle in her hand tightened till her knuckles turned white and the muscles strained against her skin. She trusted herself enough to open her lips as she panted heavily. She lifted the bottle to her lips and swallowed some more of the burning liquid to help keep the pain at bay. She lifted the bandage feeling some of the stray fabric sticking to it. She tried to clean herself as best as she could. She felt like she was going to pass out soon. Fighting against the urge, she kept her mind alert to her actions. Sucking in air everytime the bandage touched the open wound, she felt her body shivering violently.

She set the bottle down. She noticed the wound looked cleaner but not better looking. She dropped the cloth on the floor allowing her body to rest for a bit. She then reached down once more for fresh bandages. She wrapped it around her middle ignoring the throbbing pain. Satisfied with her work, she looked around her. She felt her body shutting down. 'No, I need to go to school.' She fought against the heavily lids, "I want to see her." Her voice faded away as she lost the battle and blacked out.

* * *

**AN: Another experiment, I wonder if this will even make people want to review it. If not, then I'll just delete it and try again.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own Mai Hime**

Natsuki woke up to the annoying sound of a ringtone buzzing in her pocket. Unfortunately, she had forgotten to put it on silence. Groggily, she tried to recall where she was. As she tried to move her hand into her pocket, a shock of pain drenched her entire body. 'That's right.' She winced painfully. The phone refused to shut up and it was annoying the hell out of her. Natsuki moved slowly to not aggrivate her wounds even more as she grabbed the phone. Carefully pulling it out, she lifted the phone up to see who was calling. "Mai..." She groaned. She was not in the mood to talk with Mai, but Natsuki knew that Mai would keep on calling her until she picked up. Natsuki heard the call go to voicemail.

She made sure the phone was on silence then glanced at the time. 'Dammit! I only had thirty minutes of sleep.' Natsuki dropped her hand to her side and closed her eyes once again. Her body felt heavy and she was struggling to stay awake. She felt a migrane kicking in which worsened her mood. Softly growling, Natsuki knew she would have to wait it out, she had no medicine other than bandages. She sighed but regretted it as her ribs screamed out at her. Forcing herself to calm down, she relaxed her body and taking deep and slow breaths. Natsuki's thoughts drifted to Shizuru. 'I wonder if she remembers me...' Natsuki fell asleep.

* * *

Natsuki was rudely awoken by the loud banging and yelling at her door. It took her a minute to figure out that someone was at her door and screaming for her to open it up soon. Now, Natsuki was trying to figure out how that voice sounded familiar. After some odd seconds, she remembered. "Natsuki if you do not open this door soon, I will get your landlord to open it for me. Do not test me, I know you're there because your bike is parked out front. I want to know why you were not at school and why you have NOT answered my phone calls!" Natsuki did not need this; she opened her eyes wider to get them used to the light threatening to stream through her curtains. Feeling slightly better, Natsuki cautiously sat up with great discomfort.

Her stomach felt as if someone was playing operation from within. Sweat quickly formed on her forehead and slid down her face, Natsuki used her hands to grab onto the couch and pushed her up. She slowly made progress toward the door all the while Mai's voice was getting more and more demanding. "I'm coming!" Natsuki called out. Her voice was scratchy from lack of water and she felt herself cough. Each and every cough just made her situation worse. She slowly touched the knob, "Mai, don't rush in, all right?" Once she had gotten Mai's promise did Natsuki unlock the door and open it. Mai stood on the other side with rage written all over her face until she noticed Natsuki's condition. "Come in before the interrigation, okay?" Mai calmly walked in while Natsuki closed the door and locked it. She made her way to the couch while Mai watched in shock.

When Mai tried to assist Natsuki to the couch, Natsuki waved her away. Once Natsuki sat on the couch, she was practically drenched in sweat. "What's up?" Natsuki forced her voice to sound normal but Mai heard how weak and shaky it sounded. Mai sat down next to her full of concern.

"What happened?" Mai exclaimed on the verge of hysterics.

Natsuki closed her eyes and leaned her head on the back of the couch forcing her body to once again to relax, "I've had an accident." She stated while licking her cut lips.

"How? You'r bike is perfectly untouched, yet you are a total mess. What happened to you?" Mai noticed the dirty tank lying on the floor with blood soaked in the fabric and the state of Natsuki's bandages wrapped around the girl's stomach with splotches of blood on it. The smell of alcohol was strong in the air and despite Mai's belief of the stuff, she pushed it back to focus on the more serious matter.

"Were you in another fight?" Mai's voice was back to normal as she noticed moments of pain flickered across the girl's face. Natsuki said nothing which spoke volumes. "I'm amazed you are able to get up considering the state you are in." Mai remarked looking at the near bare torso of the girl. What skin that wasn't covered by bandages or a sports bra was marked with old battle wounds she had received from the past. Mai stood up and headed for the door, "I'll be right back; I'm going to the store and getting you some things." Mai then closed the door behind her.

Forty minutes later, Mai returned with bags of medical supplies and food. She knew the protocol for these types of situations. Mai took off the bandage and her eyes widened more as the bandages showed its secrets. "Oh my God, Natuski!" Mai looked in horror at the appearance of the bloody mess. Natsuki's skin was pale and clammy. Mai spread a blanket over the couch then helped Natsuki lie down before cleaning the wound. Mai worked silently only looking at Natsuki's face once to find the girl passed out. It helped a lot so Mai was able to work more thoroughly without concern for the girl's discomfort. Mai sadly shook her head as she disinfected a needle and thread before she started to sew the girl up. "What am I going to do with you?" She whispered.

* * *

Natsuki woke up for the third time in the day to a pleasant smell in her apartment. "Don't you dare move." Came the voice coming from her kitchen. Natsuki looked down at herself to discover the reason. She had fresh bandages applied on her and her other wounds seemed to have been taken care of. "I hope you're hungry and even if you're not, you're still eating something. It will help speed up your healing process." Mai stepped over to the girl with a tray. Mai sat down on her knees and placed the tray on the floor nearby. Natsuki smelled soup coming from the tray and it caused her stomach to growl angrily. "I guess that answers my question." Mai giggled. Mai helped Natsuki to sit up a bit and spoon fed her warm soup.

Natsuki wanted to scarf the food down, but Mai made sure that she ate slowly with plenty of water inbetween so many bites. Natsuki hated to admit it, but she was already feeling better from the rest and the food. "Natsuki, here is some medicine, it should help a bit." Mai offered Natsuki the pills. Natsuki popped them in and washed it down with water. Already, Natsuki could feel her body tiring. Sensing the girl's exhaustion, Mai fed her one more spoonful of soup before laying her back down. Natsuki fell asleep the moment her head hit the pillow.

Mai had woken her up a couple more times to feed and hydrate Natsuki as well assisting the girl to the restroom. When Natsuki woke up again, she felt much better. Mai was gone, but she had left some food inside of a thermos and a small cooler along with medicine and water next to Natsuki. Grimmacing, Natsuki managed to sit herself up as she reached for the medicine. She drained the cup of water. She looked at her watch and saw that it had been two days since the incident. Thank goodness Sunday was tomorrow. Natsuki grabbed the thermos and drank the remaining lukewarm soup. She didn't care, the food tasted excellent and it kept the nauseated feeling down. Still feeling hungry, she dug into the cooler and found some sandwiches. "Good old reliable Mai." She smirked.

Natsuki sighed as she finished off the rest of the sandwiches. She felt tired again and it annoyed her. Her body fought against her once more that she stretched her body along the couch and slept for the next fourteen hours until Mai arrived to changed her bandages and cooked her some more food. Natsuki knew that Mai slipped in a lot more vegatables inside her diet, but she didn't care. When Mai sat down on the couch since Natsuki was sitting, Mai placed the tray over Natsuki's lap and they both ate in silence. "So, are you going to tell me what happened?" Mai spoke when they were done.

"..." Natsuki hated worrying her friend, but she knew that telling Mai would only make it worse. Mai had no idea that she worked in such a dangerous neighborhood; she already hated the idea of Natsuki living in an unsafe block.

"Natsuki, I'm worried. It seems as if everytime I see you, you have sported another injury. What's going on? Is it your neighbors?"

"Mai, I know that telling you not to worry would be a waste, but I have everything under control." Natsuki looked straight into violet.

"Like when you received that wound?" Mai questioned that caused Natsuki to look away. "What are you doing with your free time, Natsuki? Are you in some sort of trouble? Do you need any money? What?" Mai finally allowed her frustration to surface.

"I'm fine." Was all that Natsuki would say.

"Fine." Mai stood up angrily as she gathered their dishes and placed them on the tray. She headed for the kitchen and cleaned the dishes. She then picked up the trash before leaving. "Natsuki, I wish you would open up to me or someone because you are going to get yourself killed. You know my number. Next time, call me so I won't worry so much. I honestly have no idea what you're going to do if I wasn't around to take care of you."

Natsuki bit her tongue to keep herself from shouting out something she knew she would regret later. "I'm fine." She repeated.

Mai opened the door and stood in the doorway, "How long are you going to keep saying that to yourself?" Mai then left, softly closing the door. Natsuki glared at the door. Natsuki clenched her jaw; she could feel the muscles tighten against her cheek. Somehow, Mai's words bothered her more than they should have. Grabbing the sofa, she pushed herself off and felt her body less resistant to her movements. She made her way to the bathroom; she wanted nothing more than to wash herself clean but knew that would be a bad idea with stitches. Thankfully, Mai had helped her last night with a bath and a fresh change of clothes. Also, Mai did her laundry which was a good thing because Natsuki was running low on clean underwear.

After taking care of her personal needs, Natsuki made her way back to the couch. 'It can't be healthy for me to just sit around and do nothing.' She thought. 'Maybe a walk would do me some good, I know I'm getting tired of seeing the inside of my apartment.' She redirected her steps to her door. Grabbing her MP3 and keys, she turned on the device and clicked play before exiting. She placed the earbuds in her ears and adjusted the volume to her liking. She locked the door and looked around. Her stomach still hurt, but she could ignore it. Her limbs were stiff from lack of use, she started on her walk.

She knew that Mai would disapprove her moving so soon and worry that the stitches might rip open, Natsuki didn't care, she just wanted to move. She felt that staying active would prevent her from getting tired so easily. Her movements were slow and cautious as each step flashed pain to her brain. She decided to walk around the block at least. When she was a quarter of the way around, she found herself already winded and a growing stitch growing on the side of her ribs. 'Damn it!' She angrily thought. Who knew that such a small distance would cause her so much pain. 'Maybe walking was not such a good idea.' She smartly concluded, 'But since I'm already out here, I might as well finish it instead of turning around.' What would normally take her fifteen minutes took her almost an hour because of the constant stops to hold her side. When she made it back to her apartment she headed straight for the couch. Careful not to drop down like she was tempted to, she sat down and allowed her body to rest. She closed her eyes as her body slowly cooled down but the pain refused to lessen. She grabbed the medicine and drank them down with a glass of water. The strong vibration of pain through her body started to slow down, she felt herself drifting to sleep.

* * *

Natsuki slumped against the tree to eat her lunch. She had already missed two days of school because of her accursed wounds; she was not going to miss another day. She looked up through the branches to see the window to the student council open. Regretfully, she was not able to see Shizuru from her position. Natsuki wasn't going to complain. Being close to Shizuru was enough, Natsuki had missed seeing her. She took a bite from her bread as she closed her eyes enjoying the wind playing with her hair. 'Have you missed me as much as I have missed you?' Natsuki let out a soft chuckle at the riduclous thought. She took another bite when she heard a loud, clear voice, "Where is he?" A soft murmur followed that Natsuki figured to be Shizuru talking. "What could be so important to skip out on a meeting?" Again the quiet reply that Natsuki could not hear. "I don't need you to remind me what my duties are, Fujino! Let's go, Yukino!" The sound of the sliding doors slamming shut.

'How can she stand listening to that all day?' Natsuki rubbed her ears. She picked up her drink and took a long drink. 'She has to be a saint to put up with that all the time.' She shook her head in sympathy. She looked up at the window again only to be surprised to find Shizuru standing there. Natsuki was glad to have the branches hiding her spot from the girl's view but allowed her to see Shizuru without worry. From the stance, Natsuki could tell that Shizuru was bothered by something. 'Maybe Haruka's outbursts annoy her more than she lets on.' Natsuki raised an eyebrow in quiet humor. Shizuru sighed as she placed her hands on the sill and leaned out. 'What are you thinking about?' A smile slowly formed as Natsuki's eyes became tender watching the girl standing there in her own world. The bell rung ending the magical moment alerting both girls that lunch was over. Both girls sighed simultaneously before gathering their things and heading to their respective classes.

* * *

Natsuki was called to the student council room by an overhead speaker. Gritting her teeth, she knew the reason behind it. Her long unexcused absences had gotten their attention, the teacher called her up front and told her to report to the student council. Natsuki tightened her hold on her leather bag in her hand as she stood in front of the door. She knew that Shizuru would be on the other side among the other members. Her heart was crashing violently in her chest as she felt her hands sweat profusely. 'Calm down. Keep your emotions from showing and you will be fine.' She constructed her face to form the arrogant expression becoming of a rebel. Not even bothering to knock, she just slid the door open and glared.

Natsuki almost lost her control when she saw Mai standing in the room as well. Mai gave Natsuki a smile before turning back to the student council. "Natsuki Kuga, please sit down." Reito smiled charmingly as he waved his hand toward a chair. Natsuki narrowed her eyes before stuffing a hand in her pocket while the other kept its tight grip on her bag. She walked over to the chair and roughly sat down. The room was quiet for a moment as everyone stared at Natsuki, which made the girl annoyed and uncomfortable.

"Are we having a staring match or am I in trouble?" She voiced. Haruka turned red in the face, a clear sign that she was about to go off on a tirade.

"You are in trouble! We have spoken to you about skipping class, but now, you are skipping school altogether without notifcation."

Natsuki kept her eyes away from Shizuru; she was afraid she might show something to the Kaicho that was meant to remain a secret. She knew how perceptive the woman was as was her boyfriend. Natsuki did not want either of them to get wind of her affections for Shizuru so she kept her eyes to look out of the window with a bored expression. "Are you done?" She started to rise.

"I apologize, but Haruka spoke out of turn.' Shizuru's voice filtered to Natsuki's ears. Natsuki could feel her heart doing flips in her chest. Natsuki's nails dug into her skin as her hold on her bag increased to the point of her hand aching, reminding Natsuki of her wounds on her knuckles. "We called because we wanted to hear your side of the story for why you were absent. Mai has told us of your situation." Natsuki nearly looked at Mai, but she knew that the motion would be spotted by Shizuru. "She told us you were too ill to call that you were indisposed for three days." Natsuki turned her eyes to Shizuru.

"If you know of my reasons, then why was I called here?" Natsuki kept up her pretense. She kept her eyes focus on Shizuru's forehead so she would not have to look in the girl's eyes. She made her voice remain unaffected by the girl's presence.

"Show more respect, Kuga!" Haruka demanded that drew Natsuki's eyes to Haruka. The two had a glaring match that seemed neither were willing to lose.

"I only show respect to those who deserve it." Natsuki coldly shot back. "This is stupid, if all you're going to do is yell at me, I got more important things to do." She stood up and started walking to the door. Haruka blocked her way with her arms splayed out. Natsuki's eyes flashed dangerously as she drew her hand out of her pocket. "Get out of my way." Her voice dropped in volume.

"We have not dismissed you, Kuga, you will go back to your chair-"

"Get out of my way or else..." Natsuki allowed the threat to hang. She balled her hand into a fist, her feet taking stance.

"Now, now, let's calm down before anyone does something regretful." Reito's voice interceded. He stepped between the two girls while holding his hands up in surrender. Natsuki wanted to smash her fist into the man's face to damage the pretty boy's image, but she knew that such an action would make Shizuru upset. She swallowed as she relaxed her stance.

"Kuga, we called because we were concerned about your health and make sure you're all right. Aside from the fact that Mai explained your absence, she expressed concern for your health in such a short period." Shizuru explained calmly while staying her seat before the scene before her. Natsuki turned her eyes to Mai, who was halfway up from her seat.

"I'm fine." Natsuki curtly replied. Mai stood up completely as she nodded her head. "Am I allowed to leave or will I have to force my way out?" Natsuki then returned her eyes to Haruka and Reito.

"You may leave." Shizuru spoke. The two members parted, although, Haruka did it with great reluctance. Natsuki stormed out.

"That girl is a ticking time bomb, Fujino." Haruka pointed out.

"Kaicho, please don't blame Natsuki, she has been under a lot of stress." Mai pleaded as she turned back to Shizuru. The kaicho took a sip from her tea.

"That is no excuse for threatening us with violence." Haruka quipped as she returned to her previous position.

"I have to agree with Haruka, Shizuru. It will only be a matter of time before she blows." Reito walked over to where Mai stood. Mai gave him a wide eyed look that showed betrayal. "Please, Mai, I say this in concern for her and for the safety of the students." He placed a hand on Mai's shoulder.

Shizuru remained silent during the entire conversation, "I believe you may have a point, Reito, Haruka, which is why I believe a closer eye on her is in order." Shizuru decided. "You agree, Mai, right? Otherwise, why else would you have come to us for help?"

"I know, but I'm afraid that this help might prove to be more damaging than anything." Mai prayed that Natsuki wasn't too upset with her.

* * *

Natsuki wasn't pissed; she wasn't angry. She was beyond any word that could describe her rage. She could not believe Mai went to them of all people for help. She knew that Mai had good intentions, but it didn't stop her anger from flooding her emotions. She didn't care if her wounds were still fresh, she wanted to get into a fight. So, she headed into one of the darkest streets where she knew gangs gathered all the time. A gang was harassing a girl; they ripped her clothes while passing her back between each other. The girl was crying in horror and pain as the men forced kisses and gropes on the girl. The leader held up a lead pipe as he ordered his men to hold her against a large wooden crate. One man held onto each of the girl's arms as they made her bend over the crate. The leader then ran his hand over the girl's mini skirt before pushing it up, "This is how whores like to take it. Hard and rough." He laughed with his men as he positioned the lead pipe. The girl screamed and tried to break free.

Natsuki took off her light jacket and tossed it on the grimy floor. She spotted a chain lying next to smashed wooden cartons and picked it up. She wrapped one end around her right fist until the other end dangled just slightly over the ground. She twirled the chain in her hand as she advanced to ward the gang, who had not noticed her. 'Perfect.' She sneered. The closest one had his back to her. She swung the chain and it wrapped tightly around the man's neck. She tugged hard dragging the man back toward her. She slammed her foot into the man's face as hard as she could. She loosened the chain around the man's neck and swung it toward another member hitting him square in the face. Shock soon was wearing off the gang and they charged toward her with weapons drawn. 'Good! The more violent the better it will get.' She swung her chain overhead like a lasso; she sidestepped a man's bat aiming for her stomach. She brought the chain down on the back of the man's head. Not pausing for an instant, she ignored the pain reminding her of her wounds as she twisted her body to give another man a swift high kick to the man's nose.

She didn't care. She just wanted to be in the live action of violence that kept her mind off everything. She was lost in this moment of pain and blood. She danced around the men while attacking at weak point in their defenses. These gang members were nothing more than thugs that only fight with their fists not with their brains. They were like young bulls that only know how to show off their horns and charge. This wasn't a challenge. It was insult really as Natsuki had taken down another while breaking the leg of another in the same attack. This wasn't going to last long. She had hoped this would be challenging. She didn't care if they had won; she just wanted to forget. To work out the rage she had felt that fueled her movement. She ignored the tearing of her wound on her stomach as she flexed her body too much. Blood seeped through the stitches. She aimed a left hook to a man's jugular before grabbing the man's knife from his hand and threw it toward a recovering gang member. The knife pierced through the man's groin. Natsuki had grabbed the man, whose jugular was smash by her fist, by the hair and pulled him up in front of her in time as another gang member shot his gun in her direction.

Natsuki threw the man's body at the alarmed member and ran toward him. She used her chain and aimed it for the man's neck. She pulled him up to her body that no space existed between them. She reached out and grabbed the gun. The man refused to relinquish the gun as the two struggled to point the barrel toward their enemy. Natsuki was stronger. She aimed it at the man's knee cap and forced his finger to pull the trigger. She pushed him away who screamed in pain as she looked around for more victims. All of them were out cold. Her blood was boiling with both her rage and adrenline. She needed more. She noticed the man, who was the leader, crawling away slowly. A thought flittered through her mind as she walked up behind him; she grabbed the lead pipe. With swift movements, she grabbed his leg and pulled him toward an abandoned building. The man screamed bloody murder as his hands grabbed for anything. His fingers became raw as Natsuki entered the building and the man's last desperate cries for help fell upon deaf ears as he soon disappeared in the enveloping darkness. Moments later, a different sort of scream echoed into the alley ways that made the usual residents'blood freeze.

Natsuki exited the building with blood over her hands and clothes. The hardened look remained in her green eyes. She was about to leave when she heard the whimpering of someone. She stopped in her steps to find the girl she vaguely remember from before hugging her knees to herself while shivering from shock. The girl was looking at her with a mixture of emotions, the main one was fear. Natsuki slowly walked over to the girl and remained a few feet away from her. She knelt down to appear less threatening as she softened her expression. She wanted to talk to the girl, but she did not know what to say. 'Are you okay? Of course not, she was almost raped then she witnessed me beating the crap out of them. She probably wouldn't trust me enough to help her out, but I can't exactly leave her here.' "I'm not going to hurt you." She kept her voice calm and as nonthreatening as possible.

The girl remained silent as she kept her eyes on Natsuki. "Would you like me to take you from here?" She tried again. The girl said nothing as her body kept shaking violently. "I can call the police if you prefer and wait until they arrive?" She suggested. Natsuki had no idea what to do. She slowly stood up while telling the girl so then took some steps back. She pulled out her phone and started to punch in the three digit number when she felt something next to her. She looked down to find the girl holding herself. The girl refused to look at Natsuki but she refused to move away from Natsuki's side. "Do you want me to take you?" She asked. The girl was looking at the men no longer a threat to her. Tears started to stream down her face as she turned toward Natsuki and clung to her howling out her emotions.

Natsuki stood there dumbfounded; she was never the type to know what to do in situations such as this. It made her uncomfortable. She gingerly patted the girl's head while the girl kept on crying. Realizing that this wasn't the best place to console the girl, Natsuki tried to move, but the girl's death grip on her stopped her from budging. Sighing, Natsuki picked the girl up in her arms and made her way out of the alley. She found her discarded jacket and placed the girl down so she could wrap the girl in her jacket before lifting her up again and headed for the nearest hospital.

* * *

Natsuki made it home, exhausted. She sat down on her couch as she held her face in her hands. 'I wanted to get my anger out and this happens!' Natsuki did not need this. She ensured the girl was treated before sneaking out. The less questions, the better. Her stitches were probably in need of replacement. She didn't care any longer. She headed for the shower and shredded her clothes and bandages. She grabbed a plastic tub and filled it with hot water before grabbed the sponge and carefully bathed herself. She looked down at her stomach to find the stitches still in tact, much to the girl's surprise, but the skin did tear a bit. She washed herself then dried off. She threw her clothes in the trash. She had to work tomorrow, which also meant it was payday. 'Good.' She put on some boxers and a tank after she cleaned and re-bandaged her wound. She was too wired to sleep that she made her way to the computer. It hasn't been a week, but at this moment, any distraction would be helpful. She turned on the monitor then moved the mouse to wake up the computer. She went through the usual steps to login to her profile. She went automatically to the messages expecting to see the norm. Natsuki paused to find the number one between the parenthesis next to the word messages. "What?"

**AN: Okay, the second chapter. I noticed that "mountain from molehills" felt that this story lacked substance. I do have a plan for this story and it may not be up to par with what you're used to reading. I have to say that I'm not as great as a writer as some of these other fanfic authors; my writing is very mediocre and I am amazed that anyone enjoys the fics I produce. The choice of whether this story is worthy of your attention or not is completely up to you. I would have PM you, but you wrote anonymously. I regret to inform you that my story will probably deteriorate in your eyes for quality assurance. I just hope you're a bit more forgiving than most to allow me some leverage to flush out my story. In your eyes or probably everyone else's, Natsuki may seem like a brainless brute to you, but I cannot give every single thing about her in one chapter. It will take some time. As for anything else that seems to may seem overdone such as the action scenes, I regret to inform you that you will see a lot more of that unless you choose to disregard this poor excuse of a fic. I am not angry at you, but I do think you are judging this fic too harshly considering it is only the first of many chapters. I'm sure that you will have more to say once you read this of which I have no doubt. If by some miracle, my story actually keeps your interest, I will find that nothing short of an impossibility come true. But, as the saying in fanfiction goes, "If you do not like it, do not read it".**

**AN: Thank you for all the other reviewers for showing your support. I greatly appreciate each and every one of your reviews and it helps a great deal to continue writing.**


	3. Author's Notes

Usually, I hate it when authors do this as an addition to a chapter, but I have been forced by certain reviewers. Okay, I do not like it when people review only for the sole purpose of leaving me a message when they could simply PM me. There are reasons why there are separate areas for reviews and others for PM. Now, Mountains from Molehills and Burichichan have given me their full opinion and will disregard my wishes for such a thing. I have no problem receiving constructive criticism, which I am more than certain they will disagree. Since they are very adamant in telling me otherwise. What I did not like was being told how my development of the story was not to their liking. I know that Natsuki's character has not been as widely developed as most authors place in their first chapters. I understand that, but I like to write my stories to slowly develop. I also do not care of the sarcastic single review from Mountains from Molehills in the second chapter then writing another review on top of that later on. I do know that you were trying to help, which is okay, but I prefer if you left such patronizing remarks off the page. If you continue to do so, I will be forced to take off anonymous reviews. As for Burichichan, I did not enjoy the fact that you left a review solely for the purpose of lecturing me on the fundamentals of taking criticism. I respect you for your work, but apparently, you do not respect me in mine. I have no intention of changing the way I write because I feel that my characterization are going in the speed I like. I do appreciate you reading my stories, but I will not take insults. Again, I am more than certain you people will write a rhetorical message afterwards completely disregarding my wishes once again for Mountains from Molehills strikes me as the type who enjoys word fighting and having the last word.


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I do not own Mai Hime**

After a couple of minutes of staring at the computer monitor, Natsuki scowled. This was the last thing she wanted. Messages meant she had to reply because it was all part of the assignment. She knew that the teacher monitored their blogs to ensure the students were doing the work and not abusing it. Natsuki cursed. All she wanted was something to take her mind off her problems and now, the blog only added to it. With great relunctance, she clicked on the unopened message. She was thankful that it was short like her blogs; she had also noticed that the user name was an alias.

_- Hello, I found your latest blog so interesting that I found myself needing to reply. I don't know a lot of people, who enjoy pho, and I wanted to help you in naming a restaurant that serves the dish. It's called, Viet, the place is located next to St. Juno's Church. -_

Natsuki scrunched up her face as she reread the message several more times. 'What was this person smoking?' Her original thought formed. Who writes to people because of food? Natsuki opened up another window and typed in the search engine for Viet. 'What a weird way to name their restaurant by abbreviating the country.' She found the place not too far from where she lived. In fact, it was walking distance by half a block. She wrote down the address on a piece of paper; she turned back to the computer and switched windows. She hit the reply button.

_- Umm, thanks. -_

She clicked on the send button. 'Let's hope that will be the last I hear from them. I've got more important things to worry about than playing penpal.' She closed the windows and turned off the monitor once more.

* * *

"Natsuki, think fast!" She barely had time to react when a box was thrown in her direction. The impact caused her to grunt as her fingers strained from the sudden weight. She swallowed back a groan when the box pressed against her stomach. She threw an icy glare toward the man responsible.

"You're damn lucky I caught it, Takeda." She set the box in the truck.

"Aww, I knew you could catch it." Takeda laughed as he heaved another box and placed it on the rollar belt. Natsuki rolled her eyes as she grabbed boxes from the belt as they were rolled to her inside the truck. It was stifling inside the truck and she found herself sweating profusely. She was glad she decided to wear a light shirt.

"So, how's your body fairing since that night?" Yamada asked in concern.

"I'm fine. It's healing just fine." It was silent for awhile except for the loud music playing from the radio. Eventually, the one of the men started complaining about going home to his nagging wife, which started a lot of ribbing from everyone. The conversation turned to girls and failed dates. Natsuki kept quiet not interested in the love lives of her coworkers.

"She then started crying as we were having sex! Can you believe that?" Ken exclaimed.

"Hell yeah, she must have sobered up then saw your ugly mug. Any girl would cry if they saw you humping them." Everyone laughed, Ken flipped off the man, who made the joke while hiding a smile.

"I think it was more along the lines of how bad you were in the sack!" Takeda offered.

"Or she was just disappointed how fast the ride was. I mean, no girl wants a guy who is "Gone in sixty seconds"." Natsuki teased as all the men howled in laughter.

"You're just jealous, Natsuki, because I can get girls in my bed." Ken argued.

"You're right, Ken, I'm extremely jealous of you because of the numerous girls you can take to your bed once you have them pissed drunk and probably so high that they can't tell the difference of what a good lay is to what is not." Natsuki replied. Natsuki tossed a box onto of another as she shook her head in amusement. It was rare that she felt this good, which is why she enjoyed working here. All the men were fun to work with, sure they had fowl mouths, but Natsuki had never felt so comfortable around a group of people like them.

"All right, everyone, quit your yapping and work!" Yamada yelled over everyone's voices.

* * *

Natsuki parked her bike in her hiding spot nearby the garden of the school. She took off her helmet and placed it in the compartment under the seat. She ran her fingers through her hair and grabbed her bag before locking the seat. She quickly made her way to the front of the school and headed straight for her shoe locker. Once she changed her shoes, she hurried up the stairs. Entering her class, she went straight for her chair ignoring everyone as usual. She opened her bag and pulled out the appropriate material for the class before hanging the bag on the side of the desk. She was grateful for her reputation because it kept people away so she turned her eyes out the window and allowed her mind to drift.

She leaned back on her chair that she was balancing on the back two legs and her leg was pressed against her desk. Natsuki pictured Shizuru was probably calmly sitting in the front row of her class waiting for the sensei to arrive. 'How very Kaicho of you.' She grinned slightly at an inside joke. The thought reminded her of their meeting that changed everything for Natsuki. Those eyes that had looked at her with confusion before a moment of complete unguarded emotions. 'I never knew you could make such an expression.' Natsuki remembered how that look shot through her heart. 'Shizuru...' She closed her eyes to hide the mass of emotions rising within her. 'I bet you probably had fogotten all about that day.' She sighed as she opened her eyes once more. The voice of the class representative announcing the sensei's arrival snapped Natsuki out of her thoughts as she forced her attention to the start of the lecture.

* * *

"Natsuki!" The blue haired girl tensed when she heard the familiar voice. Mai ran up to Natsuki slightly out of breath. Natsuki waited for Mai to catch her breath to explain her reasoning for flagging her down. She was still slightly angry with Mai for interfering with her personal matters. Nothing pissed Natsuki off more than someone butting in where they were not wanted. "I've been trying to catch up to you for a while but you move fast." Mai stated.

"What do you want, Mai?" Natsuki hated beating around the bush.

"Are you still mad at me? I was only trying to help. You really scared me that last time!" Mai explained.

"You really need to learn to stay out of my business." The words hurt Mai greatly but she pushed those feelings away to stay focused on the subject.

"Natsuki, you can't keep doing this to yourself. Whatever happened in the past happened, it was horrible but-"

"Never bring that up, Mai." Natsuki growled in quiet fury. The look in the sharp green eyes gave Mai pause from fear. "You have no idea what it was like so don't act as if you do." Natsuki pushed Mai away and walked by. Mai watched helplessly at her friend; she hated this feeling of being utterly helpless when her friend needed her the most.

* * *

Natsuki felt the familiar anger surging through her body as she made her way to her bike. Mai knew what had happened, but she refused to stop touching on the sensitive subject. Natsuki didn't want to talk about feelings. That was the last thing that would help in her situation, she just wanted to forget it and go on with her life. Unfortunately, past events continued to haunt her that made her want to tear her head open and throw the memories away physcially. She unlocked the compartment and pulled her helmet out before stuffing her bag inside. Slamming the seat down, she grabbed her hair and twirled it at the back of her head before sliding the helmet on. She straddled the bike and gripped the handle bars roughly. 'Damn you, Mai, did you have to bring that up?' She furrowed her brows as she tried to force her nightmare back. She reached in her pocket to pull the keys out.

"Ara, this is a surprise!" Natsuki jerked her head toward the source of the voice. Her eyes widened behind the dark visor as she saw Shizuru.

'What is she doing here?' Natsuki's thoughts raced along with her heart. The dirty blonde tilted her head to the side as she studied Natsuki. Natsuki noticed Shizuru was holding a bunch of flowers in her hand that shocked her. '..Shizuru must have been in the garden. Is this a new hiding spot of yours?' Natsuki couldn't stop the small smile from forming at the discovery. Nothing gave Natsuki more pleasure than knowing more about the girl before her; Natsuki was grateful she had on her helmet for the visor was tinted to keep Shizuru from seeing her expression.

"I often wondered what the sound of a motor nearby was from, now I have solved the mystery." Shizuru commented as she pasted on her everyday smile. "You do realize that motorbikes are prohibited on school grounds?" The girl lifted the bouquet of flowers up to her nose to smell them. Natsuki watched in fascination toward the action. When Natsuki continued her silence, Shizuru tried another tactic, "Might I ask for your name?" Natsuki stiffened at the question. Despite the reasonable explanation that Shizuru couldn't see her face, Natsuki was annoyed. "Did I anger you?" The blantant curiousity from Shizuru's tone only increased Natsuki's annoyance. Clenching her jaw, Natsuki fought hard against her temper.

She didn't want to show Shizuru more of her temper. She almost reached up to pinch the bridge of her nose but remembered she had her helmet on. Shaking her head to rid herself of her bad mood, Shizuru mistaken it for responding to her answer, "Really?" Shizuru raised an eyebrow. Natsuki was momentarily confused until she replayed what had happened.

'I need to get out of here before I do something even more stupid.' Natsuki started the engine and quickly shifted gears to speed away. Shizuru watched in surprise by the mysterious rider's action. Out of all the reactions, that was not one of them. She inhaled the scent of the flowers in her hand before turning around and headed back to the garden.

'Familiar.' A word that refused to go away the entire time Shizuru was with the biker. 'A memory long past.' Shizuru stopped to look over her shoulder knowing the rider was long gone. She felt foolish in her actions that she turned back to the garden grasping the flowers close to her heart.

* * *

Natsuki arrived home with several bags in her arms. She shut the door with her foot as she made her way to the kitchen. A satisfied expression lit her face as she stacked the bags along the narrow counter. She opened up the cabnets and started piling stuff inside without care of how the cans and packages were positioned. A few items needed to be placed inside the fridge. She wadded up most of the bags and placed them inside of one bag for future use. 'No point in throwing them away when I can have free garbage bags.' She smirked as she headed for her cabinets once more. She couldn't stop the smile from growing at the full capacity inside. It had been so long since she had last seen her kitchen so stocked. She had made sure she grabbed a lot of canned and packaged foods to last longer and it always helped it was instant.

Looking through the cabinet, she settled on some ramen. Grabbing the bowl, she placed it on the counter. She filled her kettle with water and set it on the stove. She turned the dial to HI before walking toward her computer. She typed in an address and waited for it to upload. Once the page was finished, she typed into the header what she wanted and scanned down the list until she found what she had been looking for. She clicked play and enlarged the screen to fit her monitor. She made sure the speakers were on before stepping back to the kitchen and checking the water. She heard the intro song to one of her favorite shows playing so she impatiently waited for the water to boil, "Come on!" She pulled off the plastic wrapping of the bowl and pulled back the paper lid halfway. She grabbed the small packets of seasoning and poured the contents underneath the noodles.

Natsuki looked over at her computer to see the beginning of the episode starting. Her foot started tapping as she placed her hands on her waist. Finally the whistle notified her that the water was ready. She quickly turned off the stove and poured the steaming water into the bowl before setting the kettle on a cool eye. She grabbed a pair of chopsticks and carefully walked over to the computer. She closed the lid and set her chopsticks on top of the bowl, her eyes glued to the program. She cursed when the first part of the program ended and she had to click on the second part to continue, 'Stupid YouTube, it should let the videos last longer than a mere eleven minutes.' she grumpily complained. She stirred the rest of her broth with her chopsticks as she leaned closer to the monitor at the climax of the program. Just as the program was getting to the best part the second part ended and Natuski felt herself getting pissed. She looked at the final part to see it only held three minutes left. She quickly clicked on it. Once the program's credits rolled, she allowed her mind to cuss YouTube. 'Why can't it be more like Veoh? Atleast, you're allowed to post videos longer than eleven minutes to watch but not a lot of people post this show online. I'm surprised someone placed it on YouTube.'

She looked for the next episode as she drank the rest of the broth from the bowl. She clicked on the program then rushed to the kitchen to grab a glass of water. She rushed back to her seat. She became engrossed with the program that the sound of her phone ringing caught her off guard. Growling, she paused the video and grabbed her phone. The caller ID showed Yamada. Sighing, she answered the call knowing the reason behind it, "Yeah?"

"Are you busy?"

"Who called in?" Natsuki kept her eyes on the screen.

"Tao, a family emergency."

"When?"

"ASAP." Yamada responded, he was used to Natsuki's conversation skills that it didn't bother him.

"Fine, bye."

"Bye." Natsuki set her phone on the desk and gazed longingly at the screen. She exited out of the window and turned the monitor off. 'Oh well, maybe next time.' She changed into her work clothes before exiting her apartment.

* * *

"Natsuki, want to head to the bar with us?" Takeda invited as the group of guys were finished for the night and filing out of the door.

"Not tonight, maybe next time." She waved as she made it to her motorcycle. She put on her helmet then checked her watch. It was a little past four, they were really understaffed which explained why they ran late. She drove home and showered - seeing how it has been almost two weeks, she decided her wounds were healed enough - before dressing carefully in dark grey cargo pants and a black dress shirt. She checked the time again to see she had some time. She headed for the kitchen to grab a package of riceballs and a bottle of ban-cha tea from the fridge placing them inside her messenger bag along with other things and headed out the door. She drove to a flower shop to buy Astilbe.

She greeted the elder lady warmly since she had started coming. The lady knew her immediately and had her order ready. "Always on time as usual every year, I made sure they were perfect." The old lady smiled as she held the flowers over to Natsuki's waiting arms. Natsuki held out some bills as she took the flowers.

"Thanks, Tori." Natsuki left the small store and sat on her motorcycle. She drove slowly to not disturb the flowers as she drove the familiar path to her destination. Parking her bike, Natsuki gathered the bag in one hand and the flowers laying against her chest supported by her other hand. She made her way into the large open field. Sitting in the middle of it was a burnt structure. Beams slanted or lying on the bald spot where a house once situated. Natsuki looked at the rotted, blackened wood littering the ground. A few miscellaneous objects buried in the soil along with two graveyards resting a few years away. She approached the grave site. Kneeling down, she placed the package of riceballs and the bottle of tea in between the graves. She unwrapped the flowers and placed them inside the two vases resting in front of both grave stones. She took out two incensed candles and lit them.

"Hello, Mom and Dad, another year has passed. I brought your favorite food. Funny considering they are the plainest things to eat." The corners of Natsuki's mouth twitched slightly. "Nothing much has changed. Mai's being as annoyingly helpful like always. She actually pissed me off several days ago. I don't understand why she can't just drop it.' Natsuki sighed as she looked up at the sky just starting to light up. "Remember that girl I told you about awhile back? Well, she's crazy for me." Natsuki chuckled. "Even if she doesn't know it, I'm kidding. She's dating someone so I guess that's my answer."

Silence permeated the area. Natsuki allowed her thoughts to drift as she laid down and used her bag as a pillow. It was always so peaceful. She closed her eyes. When she opened them again, the sun was high in the sky. She glanced at her watch to see that it was ten in the morning. She sat up and rubbed her face. She looked at her parents and a soft smile formed, "I got to go. I'll see you next year." She promised as she gathered her stuff before leaving.

* * *

As she was driving home, she passed by a church. The bells ringing caught her attention, she stopped at the red light as she tried to remember why the sound of a church should trigger her memory. She looked around in hopes of seeing a familiar landmark. Just as her brain was about to grasp the memory, the light turned green and the car ahead of her accelerated. She shook her head and headed home, 'Must not have been important enough for me to remember.' She concluded as she threw her keys on the desk closing her apartment door behind her. 'Next time, I need to bring a blanket.' The ground was still damp from the morning dew and bugs and dirt were on her clothes and in her hair when she reached her motorcyle to leave the field.

She headed straight for the kitchen to get a glass of water. She drank the entire contents down in two gulps before refilling and only drinking half. She placed the glass on the counter and stripped out of her clothes and headed for the shower. Once more refreshed, she put on track pants and a t-shirt. She looked in her fridge for something to eat yet nothing seemed appealing to her tastes. 'I bought a bunch of food and yet nothing screams out for me.' Natsuki moved from the fridge to the cabinets. Annoyed, she just shut the doors and headed for the computer. She logged once more onto the school's intranet and checked her profile. 'What to write. What to write.' She headed straight for the blog page.

- I've stocked up in the kitchen, yet I am not craving anything in there. How frustrating! -

Natsuki posted the blog and went to check on her messages. Her eyes widened once more to see another new message. She clicked on the link. The person had replied to her. "Of all the-" Natsuki was beginning to hate this homework assignment more than usual.

- You're welcome. Let me know what you think about the food. I've tried different food establishments, but the pho at Viet is one of the best I've eaten. -

"Pho! That's what I'm craving!" Natsuki exclaimed as she had forgotten where the restaurant's location. She was about to open another window when she remembered she had written down the instructions. She found it still laying on the desk. "No wonder the church reminded me of something." She had a smile on her face as she looked back at the message. 'What am I suppose to write now?' Natsuki was at a lost. Conversation was not her strong point, in fact, she was better at killing conversation than continuing it. She was about to thank the person again, but she realized that would make her appear limited on words.

- Okay -

Face palming herself, Natsuki tried to think of more to write but failed. So, she just sent the message. 'This person is going to think I'm stupid and probably stop responding.' She shook her head. Then she thought over her words, "Isn't that what I want? Stop this thinking Natsuki and just get some food." She grabbed her keys with the directions in hand. The door shut and the sound of the lock snapped into place. A soft chime sounded as a new message was received.

* * *

**AN: Thank you for all your support. I hope this chapter doesn't let you down. I intend to write the next chapter to "Lady Hawke" soon.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I do not own Mai Hime.**

_Cradling the unconscious girl in her arms, Natsuki headed out of the maze of bushes. She glanced down at Shizuru's tear-shrieked face. Natsuki had no idea where to go so she opted to head home. Being careful not to jostle the girl too much and disturb her much needed rest, Natsuki carefully sat on her bike with Shizuru leaning against her chest. The loud purr of the engine did not wake Shizuru like Natsuki feared before she drove off. Much to Natsuki's displeasure, she had to keep the speed slow and steady._

_Arriving at her apartment, Natsuki balanced the sleeping girl against one arm while she slid off the bike then placed her other arm underneath the girl's legs. She entered the apartment with some trouble getting the key out. As she crossed the threshold, she used her foot to close the door behind her. She made her way toward her sofa and lowered Shizuru upon it. _

_Natsuki headed for the kitchen to fill a bowl with cool water. Immediately, she headed back and knelt down with the bowl set beside her. A clean cloth placed inside the water before Natsuki rung it out and gently dabbed Shizuru's face. The swelling of Shizuru's eyes had begun going down much to Natsuki's relief. A crease formed in-between the navy haired girl's eyes as she replayed what had happened just moments ago. A note of disapproval flittered across her features at the poor condition Shizuru seemed to be in. Judging by the slight weight of the girl, the shallowness of her cheeks, and the dark circles under her eyes, Natsuki knew that Shizuru's plight was bad. The girl was perfect at hiding her misery to the public; Natsuki never thought that such a spoiled, rich girl would know the pain of loss._

_Plunging the cloth back into the cool water, Natsuki rung it out and wiped away the dirt on the girl's hands and arms. 'Was it so unbearable that you would do this to yourself?' Natsuki gritted her teeth at the slight torn skin on the girl's arms and palms. She stood up and headed for the bathroom to grab the antiseptic and cotton balls. She returned quickly. Ensuring that the girl's cuts were free from dirt, she applied the antiseptic. Natsuki winced at the memory of the girl's state. Setting down the bottle and the used cotton balls, she studied the girl sleeping on her sofa._

_

* * *

_

_The girl was beautiful, that much was never in question. The usual mysterious smile always adorned her lips as she maintained the normal polite attitude. Miss Prim & Proper was the common nickname Natsuki would address her as, which made Natsuki hate her even more. The girl loved to look down to others she deemed beneath her. What could this girl know of real life? She lived in her castle without a worry in her life. She was spoiled and had everything given to her on a silver platter, what right did this girl have to judge her?_

_Natsuki would purposely avoid her at all costs because the mere sight of her was enough to turn her violent. When she was in fights, she would envision Shizuru's face on her opponents. It only fueled her hatred toward the girl. For as long as Natsuki could remember, she had harbored a deep loathing for this girl until now. Now, she didn't know what to feel. Seeing Miss Prim & Proper broken in the park's garden caught her off guard. Natsuki's initial thought was to leave her alone, but the sight of the girl caused Natsuki to pause. The girl's hair was disarrayed and the smile was replaced by a look of utter lost. Light was gone from her eyes and the appearance of her clothes was shocking. They were torn in areas as if she did it purposely and blots of red shone brightly on her skin. Natsuki found herself unable to walk away. The entire appearance of Shizuru reminded Natsuki strongly of herself when that incident occurred._

_But being Natsuki, she was never good at the touchy feeling moments either. Shizuru was sitting with her knees drawn to her chest and her arms hugging them close. She was leaning against a bush, crushing them against her weight. Natsuki looked around to make sure they were alone before she slipped out of her jacket and slowly approached the girl. Kneeling down, Natsuki looked into Shizuru's eyes. Shizuru seemed to be looking through her as if she wasn't seeing her. "Kaicho? Can you hear me?" Natsuki's deep voice broke the silence. If Shizuru heard her, she made no indication that she did. Placing the jacket around the girl's small frame, Natsuki felt anger surge through her person. Shizuru's body was icy cold._

_"Fujino?" She tried again. No response. Sighing, Natsuki reached out and cupped the girl's chin in her hand to make the girl look up in her eyes, "Shizuru…" She whispered as Shizuru's eyes remained dead. "…." Natsuki wished she knew what to do. This kind of stuff was in Mai's department, but Natsuki had this faint idea that Shizuru didn't want this to get around not that she blamed the girl. It was no one business. Natsuki removed her hand from Shizuru's chin to lightly pat the girl's cheek hoping to snap the girl out of her phase. Once again, nothing happened. Natsuki adjusted herself that she sat down next to the girl. 'So much for my peaceful evening.' She sighed once more. Thankfully the garden provided the two with enough cover from other people. Natsuki allowed her thoughts to drift eventually loosing track of time. The sun dipped low creating a beautiful scenery of colors in the sky. A familiar scent caught her attention. Natsuki looked around until her eyes caught sight of something. Eyes widened in shock._

_She stood up and headed for the cluster of flowers a short distance away. She picked a twig full of the flowers and headed back. She knelt down in front of Shizuru once more holding up the flowers, "This is __Astilbe, it's a favorite of my mother's because of what they represent.' Natsuki explained as she took a whiff of the flowers' scent, "Mother always harped on and on to father and me how the most impactful messages are from the things you don't say but do.' Natsuki tucked Shizuru's hair behind the girl's ear before breaking off a smaller sprig of the flower and placing it in the girl's hair, "Astilbe is supposed to mean "I'll be waiting". I honestly don't know how people come up with the idea of how a flower is to represent a message. Mother always said that it was the most romantic flower ever because its meaning is more emotionally binding than a rose." Natsuki held Shizuru's hand and placed the rest of the flowers in it._

_Shizuru seemed to respond as her eyes seem to come alive. Natsuki waited for Shizuru's reaction and much to Natsuki's horror, a thin sheet of moisture formed in the girl's eyes. A single tear escaped the forming pools and slid down her cheek. Natsuki watched as more and more tears made their own wet trail down her face eventually causing Shizuru to choke back a sob before throwing her arms around a startled Natsuki and begun to cry, hard. Natsuki, not expecting the sudden body rush, fell back on her butt as she felt Shizuru's body slam into hers and holding on for dear life as her body shook with sobs. The memory of Shizuru's expression right before she attached herself to Nastuki burned in her mind. Slowly, Natsuki had gotten her bearings back before embracing the girl, allowing her to cry out her anguish._

_Everything she thought of the sobbing girl in her arms instantly vanished, "That's right, cry out all that ugliness." Natsuki murmured as she tightened her hold on the girl in her arms. Shizuru seemed to have heard her and her sobs increased. The rawness of Shizuru's cries shot through Natsuki's heart in a way that Natsuki never thought possible. They sat like that nearly all night. Natsuki didn't care that her ass was sore or her legs were cramping, Shizuru kept up her crying until she passed out in sleep._

_

* * *

_

_Natsuki frowned when she drew back from the memories as she realized she had been looking at Shizuru for quite some time. The girl seemed to be sleeping soundly and looked much better. "I don't know what happened to you, but…' Natsuki looked away at the usual feeling of unease; what was she trying to say to the girl. Aggravated, she gritted her teeth. Getting up once more, she realized she needed to get Shizuru home. Natsuki offered a soft apology before searching the girl's pockets to find a wallet and keys. An I.D card had the necessary information. Gently, Natsuki picked her up once more and carried her away._

_The ride to Shizuru's home was quiet with barely any traffic. Natsuki knew of the neighborhood because Mai lived nearby. Careful not to jostle Shizuru too much, Natsuki made it to Shizuru's place. The house was dark and looked as if no one was home. She managed to open the door and entered Shizuru's home. The place was dark so Natsuki had to find a light switch, which proved to be difficult when you were holding someone in your arms. Thankfully, Shizuru was light. Natsuki made a guess of which room was Shizuru's before pulling back the covers and gently placing the unconscious girl on it. 'Talk about being a hard sleeper.' She mused as she tucked Shizuru in. Natsuki was about to leave when she noticed that Astilbe was still tucked in Shizuru's hair. She took it out and laid it on Shizuru's nightstand. "Good night." Natsuki made her way out of Shizuru's home, leaving the keys on the table next to the door and drove home, feeling utterly exhausted._

* * *

Leaning back to gently pat her bulging stomach, Natsuki looked down at her empty bowl. A satisfied expression on her face with the remaining rich flavors on her tongue, "She was right, that was the best pho I've ever tasted. I can't believe I've never noticed that restaurant before." She yawned. She stretched out before righting herself on her chair once more. Pushing the bowl to the side, she moved her mouse to wake up the computer. 'Wouldn't hurt to watch another episode.' The smirk on her expression vanished as she noticed another message in her inbox. Natsuki felt a tic growing. Clenching her teeth in annoyance, she clicked on the message with full intentions of telling this person to leave her alone.

- Maybe we could both enjoy a bowl together. - Was the message that caused Natsuki's face to light up.

**AN: I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter. I also placed a bit of Natsuki/Shizuru interaction inside to show you a bit of what happened. I am most curious to see the type of reaction I will get.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: I do not own Mai-Hime**

Blood seeped down her neck from her wounded cheek, Natsuki shook her head as a wave of dizziness flooded her senses. Her opponent managed to land a near fatal hit on her temple. The distant cheering and roar of the crowd surrounding the two fighters rung in her ears as she tried to focus the towering man before her. She somehow managed to duck before a powerful hay-maker made it's way to her. She blindly reached out and grabbed the muscular wrist to bring it down to perform a solid kick to the man's ribs. She heard a satisfying snap and the man's grunt of pain. She danced out of the man's reach and placed some distance between them, but she backed into the circled crowd and they pushed her back. She rolled to escape another fatal attack and rammed her foot as hard as she could into the back of the man's knee. SNAP!

Maneuvering her smaller and more flexible body to his front, the man was screaming in utter pain with his head thrown back and him kneeling on the mud-encrusted ground. Without missing a beat, Natsuki charged toward him and body slammed into him with her full force. She put just enough force into his exposed throat to incompaciate him before plummeting his defenseless face with strong punches. The roaring and cheering of the crowd suddenly seemed to become silent as they all watched in shock. Natsuki's rage took over and she continued to attack the man's face no longer caring. Blood and sweat splattered her form and the ground beneath them. Exhaustion and reason slowly seeped back and she stopped herself.

Her breathing was erratic and short. She stood up slowly and glared down at the man. The man approached her earlier that night demanding payment for what she did to his brother. The brother she psychologically and physically damaged when she saved that girl from being raped. Now, she had defeated the other brother. She tried to quieted her rage and get her breath back down to normal when she heard feet scuffling behind her. She was suddenly reminded of the gang of men surrounding them. That man's gang. She knew if they all decided to fight her, she would lose. She intensified her glare to the men approaching her, but she realized that they were walking slowly toward her as if she were a dangerous animal they all feared.

Pushing away her apprehension, she kept her position over the man's unconscious body. Her fists tightly clenched, she stood over her prize like a predator protecting it's kill from scavengers. The men stopped at a safe distance, one of them took one extra step to signify his position as second in command. "Peace. We don't want any trouble." He held up his hands in surrender. "All we want is to take our boss and go." Natsuki maintained her stance. He was trembling as he waited for her answer. After a few tense minutes, Natsuki slightly relaxed and moved away from the man. The man visibly sighed in relief and thanked her. He signaled for his men to help and move their boss away.

Her emotions were still flaring inside, but she lacked the energy to do anything. She looked down at her blood-encrusted fists, which were cut and torn from the fight. She knew she was going to feel it in the morning, but she preferred the pain over what she was feeling at this moment. She walked to her apartment with slow steps; she vaguely heard screams from a couple she passed but ignored them. She casually sat down at her desk and turned on the monitor. What was she going to do? She had agreed to meet the mysterious person at Viet. She was planning on telling this person to stop pming her and believed that when the person saw who she was, they would immediately go away.

They agreed to carry an item to identify each other, she would have her red and black helmet and the person would have a book, _Tale of Two Cities_. She was a few minutes late so when she arrived, she paused at the window. She looked inside to find the restaurant with only a few customers. It appeared everyone was with someone else or a group so the person was late as well. As she was about to enter, someone left the restroom and sat down at a table by themselves. They glanced around and Natsuki ducked out of sight to peer around and find the person picking up _Tale of Two Cities_. Natsuki's eyes were as wide as saucers at who it was. 'No!'

Natsuki slammed her head against the surface of the desk as the memories flooded her mind. 'Out of everyone, why did it have to be her?' She gritted her teeth. After discovering the identity, she left the restaurant and just walked. It was then she found herself surrounded by gang members and a man almost seven feet weighing easily over four hundred pounds. Natsuki thought it convenient because it helped release some of the pent up emotions. She dreaded checking her messages. She moved the mouse and waited for the computer to wake up. She went through the normal ritual and logged in. As expected, there was a message in her inbox.

* * *

Natsuki was sitting under the familiar window at school. The weather was colder that the school grounds were nearly bare because it was so cold. She didn't care; she had to be close to Shizuru. When she arrived at school, she heard the annoying gasps and whispering of the students whenever she passed by them. She looked like her skin was black and blue. Her knuckles were swollen that Natsuki had a difficult time using her hands. She bandaged them but blood was seeping through the white cotton. "Damn!" She looked at her hands. The bandages were darkened with a brownish red color. She gingerly flexed her fingers wincing in pain.

What little scabs that formed cracked open and the fibers of the bandages irritated her open wounds. She hissed in pain as she kept flexing her hands. Her swollen eye watered that it made it difficult for her to see from it. Strange, Shizuru was the source of her problems, but she was also the source of her sense of home. "What am I going to do now? I don't suppose you have a solution?" She whispered. She closed her good eye.

"That would depend entirely on what the problem is." A voice rung out that snapped Natsuki from her thoughts. She jerked her head up and her bad eye tried to focus on the person but only saw a blurred image. She turned her head more to the side to see the Student Council President standing to her side. Natsuki knew the voice without seeing her, but she had to confirm her suspicions. With reflexes born from years of street fighting, Natsuki stood up only to cringe at the pain shooting through her body. The usual smirk melted off Shizuru's face and concern shone in her eyes, "What happened to you?" Shizuru seemed to take in Natsuki's appearance.

Slightly blushing under Shizuru's gaze, Natsuki turned her face away and kept her face stern, "It's none of your business." Her voice was harsher than she intended but didn't apologize.

"There is no need to be embarrassed. If you don't take care of your wounds, they will become infected and the problem will become worse." Shizuru's voice remained even and calm.

"I can take care of myself; I don't need your advice." Natsuki started to walk off, when a hand landed on her shoulder. Natsuki stiffened by the contact from the effects Shizuru's touch did to her body. To Shizuru, she believed it was because Natsuki didn't like to be touched so she withdrew her hand.

"I can understand that you don't like me or even hate me, but I still stand by what I say. You should get your wounds cared for. You say you can take care of yourself, but from your condition, it contradicts what you say. I've noticed that you always arrive late and in poor dress. Your physical presence always seems exhausted and in bad shape. It disturbs the other students and staff that I received numerous complaints about it. I don't know what is going on in your personal time, but I have to disagree that you can take care of yourself. You say it's none of my business, but I disagree once again because your image reflects this school."

Natsuki kept her back to Shizuru. She wanted to say something, but she dare not interrupt Shizuru. Regardless of the fact that Shizuru was scolding her, she loved listening to the girl's voice. Before she knew it, Shizuru had grabbed her wrist and was escorting her inside the building and to the nurse's room. "Excuse me, Sagisawa-sensei, please pardon the intrusion, but I have a student, who needs some medical attention." Shizuru knocked and entered cautiously. The clinic was empty which surprised the Kaichou momentarily.

"Oh well, I guess since no one is here, we had better-" Natsuki was blushing furiously because of Shizuru holding her wrist gently; she tried to pulled her wrist free.

"Then we'll take care of Natsuki's wounds ourselves." Shizuru interrupted her and pulled Natsuki in the room and pushed her on the stool. She inspected the medicine and tools before grabbing what she needed.

"Wha...what are you doing?" Natsuki demanded as she watched Shizuru soaking cotton balls with rubbing alcohol. Ignoring her question, Shizuru placed the cotton balls on a towel and reached for Natsuki's hands. Natsuki instantly pulled away with her cheeks burning, "What do you think you're doing?" She pressed.

"I am going to tend to Natsuki's injuries, of course." Shizuru stated matter of factly as she succeeded in capturing Natsuki's hand. She carefully peeled off the bandage then repeated the action on Natsuki's other hand. Natsuki was dumbstruck so she just watched as Shizuru begun to disinfect and treat her hands. Natsuki had to keep a constant reminder not to smell Shizuru's hair as her head was bent to care of her hands. "What has Natsuki been doing to cause her hands to get in such a state?"

All Natsuki could think of was how soft Shizuru's hands were and how good she smelled. Natsuki never imagined touching Shizuru like this in a million years. Her heart was rapidly beating like a thousand wild horses. 'I wonder if her face is as soft as her hands.' Natsuki had to close her eyes for a moment. 'If I touched you, would you be frightened off? If I tried to steal a kiss, would you be angry?' Natsuki was startled when her good eye caught a hand waving in front of it.

"Hello? Did I hurt Natsuki by accident?" Shizuru's maroon eyes revealed worry.

"Will you just stop that!" Natsuki was flustered by the close vicinity of their faces and the look in Shizuru's eyes. She pulled back and accidentally yanked her hand away. She never knew a time when she blushed so much, but it seemed to be a permanent fixture in the presence of the current Kaichou. Aside from Shizuru's voice, Natsuki heard the most beautiful sound ever to grace her ears: Shizuru's laughter. The laughter suddenly stopped and Natsuki witnessed Shizuru blinking in surprise. Pulled out of her Shizuru induced stupor, Natsuki noticed how Shizuru had a slight reddish tint dusted across her cheeks and Shizuru's expression of utter shock, "What's wrong?"

Shizuru seemed to have gathered her bearings, "I don't think I've ever seen Natsuki smile before. You should do it more often."

'What? I was smiling? Great, no wonder she was looking shocked. I probably looked like a complete idiot!' As Natsuki was cursing at herself in her head, Shizuru took her hand once more to apply ointment to the wounds.

"Don't worry, I won't tell your deep dark secret." A slight grin formed. Slender fingertips caressed Natsuki's roughened and cut knuckles to rub the ointment into the skin.

'Don't worry, she says. She probably thinks I'm the biggest dork in known universe! DAMMIT!' Natsuki cradled her face in her hands and sighed heavily. She felt hands pulling her own hands away.

"I haven't finished tending to your wounds, so, please stop delaying it.' Shizuru's voice returned to normal and her face reverted back behind her mask, "It's nothing to be ashamed of." Shizuru tightly bandaged Natsuki's hands then moved to Natsuki's face. "Don't move." Natsuki froze at the feel of Shizuru's hands on her face. Shizuru begun to use a wet cloth to wipe the dirt off Natsuki's face while holding her chin in place. Natsuki closed her eyes to feel Shizuru completely. Her heart went into overdrive. She knew that the burning sensation she was feeling on her face had nothing to do with the soft, warm hands nor the treatment given to her wounds.

'Oh my God! Can this get any worse?'!' She exclaimed in her head but managed to keep her thoughts from revealing on her face. Nails massaged her scalp that created a tingle to run down her spine. Jerking her eyes open, she was met with intense red eyes. "Wh...wha...what? Di-"

"Natsuki's hair was in the way of my work." Shizuru explained with a hint of amusement in her eyes. After all, Natsuki's expressions were so painfully adorable, and Shizuru found herself becoming quite addicted. Then she was treated once more to a blush on the pale girl's face. Shizuru stared at the angry cut on the girl's cheek that caused her amusment to end. "This is going to sting." She warned before dabbing the disinfected cloth against the torn skin.

Natsuki kept her face neutral as she trained her eyes on the wall behind Shizuru. The sting was the last thing on her mind; she was trying her hardest not to stare at the girl, who captivated her. The fabric of the cloth slightly snagged at the torn hardened edges of her skin, but she ignored it because the sweet smell of Shizuru's breath washed over her lips. 'God, why are you torturing me like this?' She couldn't help but notice Shizuru's close proximity to her as Shizuru was concentrating closely on her work. Natsuki wasn't sure just how much her heart could keep up with this. The temptation was too much; Natsuki pulled away. "Thanks, but I got to go." She made her way to the door.

"Natsuki, wait.' Natsuki paused with her hand on the door. "Where are you going?" Shizuru's voice held a tone of something Natsuki had never heard from the girl.

"Heh, where else?' Natsuki slid open the door and stepped out, "Class." She partically turned her head to the side with a smirk then closed the door behind her.

* * *

**AN: Okay, here is the sixth chapter, I was greatly annoyed that this entire chapter was lost when my hard drive crashed, but now I'm glad. Why? Because when I rewrote this chapter, I redid some of the scenes and became satisfied with the results. I hope everyone else feels the same way. Besides, I thought everyone would appreciate some ShizNat goodness. Thank you again for the reviews, everyone!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: I do not own Mai-Hime**

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Exhausted, Natuski rode down the busy night streets. She had just gotten off a double shift at work and the last thing she wanted to deal with was heavy traffic on the road. She honestly never understood the big deal with Christmas, but everyone seemed to think it was the one day of the year that you had to be out and about buying everything you believed was on sale. She found it quite frustrating since she always believed how commercialized Christmas had become. She hated Christmas and wished that people would stop wishing her a Merry Christmas. She hated the fake smiles and the sound of registers clinging from every sale. She went to a local grocery store just a few days before the blasted holiday and had to wait in line for a full thirty minutes just to buy a few items. Seriously, if you are going to the express lane, you need to only have twenty or less items in your basket. She chewed one customer out about it, but they just claimed that it was the shortest line and didn't want to wait forever to make their purchase. Natsuki replied that they shouldn't have bought so much, and to make matters worse, the clerk just dismissed the entire argument saying it was okay. NO, IT HELL WASN'T! The point of an express lane was to go fast! After a long and troublesome day at work, Natsuki was prepared to relax at home only to discover she was in the middle of a huge traffic jam. Unfortunately, people in cars believe the closer they are to you either driving or stopping, it will somehow make everything go faster.

She truly hated people. One car almost caused her to collide into the side rail because they forgot to check their blind spot. Growling out her annoyance, she decided to go the shortcut, in other words, take the shoulder to get to her turn off. Thankfully, it was only a quarter of a mile from where she was. She felt a huge migraine coming and needed something to take it away. She maneuvered through the back-roads with practiced ease and managed to arrive at her place. 'FINALLY!' It was nearing midnight and she wanted to just fall on her couch and sleep. Ever since the discovery of whom her pen-pal was and the run-in with Shizuru just piled on the pressure along with everything else caused her no small amount of stress. As soon as she had time off from school for the holiday, she had been taking extra shifts at work going so far as working eighteen hours in a day. She preferred to work and keep her mind off the issues at hand than staying home and her thoughts running away with her. She went straight to the bathroom to shower and dress for the night. Yamada forced her to take tomorrow off and enjoy Christmas even as far as extending an invitation to join his family for the holiday. She refused and tried to convince him to allow her to work, but he stood his ground. Now, she had all Christmas with nothing to do. She headed for her computer. She dreaded it, but the teacher had already spoken to her about her not updating on time.

She went through the usual process then noticed two new messages. She really didn't want to read them since she was pretty sure she knew what was within the contents. Taking a deep breath, she went straight to her fridge and grabbed a couple of bottles of soda and the box of pizza before heading back to the computer. She popped off the lid and took a huge swallow before opening up the earliest message.

**- I hope you are okay because you never showed at the restaurant, or, is it because you were disappointed with who you saw? - **

Gritting her teeth, Natsuki allowed the mouse to waver over the next message.

**- Regardless of it all, I appreciate you conversing with me. If it is all the same with you, I am going to keep following your posts and wish you a wonderful holiday. - **

The image of the person writing her these replies floated at the forefront of her mind. Fate must really have a personal vendetta against her. She checked how far in-between the two messages were sent and saw that only a week had passed. Temptation of never responding was very strong, but she knew she couldn't do that. Drinking the rest of the soda rapidly, she set down the empty bottle and pressed reply. She stared long and hard at the blinking icon on the word pad. The computer impatiently awaiting her response as well as the recipient, she opened up another bottle and took a large gulp of the drink before once again placing her fingers on the keyboard. 'What should I say? It's not like I can write, 'Long time, no write.' Natsuki inhaled deeply feeling her own frustration building up. 'Why did it have to be THAT person? Out of everyone in our school, I had to be pen pals with THAT person.' Slamming her fist on the desk, she cradled her head feeling a headache coming. After much thought, she had begun typing.

**-Sorry, I had an emergency. –**

She read the sentence over for what seemed like a hundred times while the curser waved over the "send" button. She reached for her soda only to realize she had somehow drank both of them without her realizing she had. 'The Hell with it!' She pressed the "send" button and logged out. Nothing frustrated her more than uncertainty because of fear holding her back. What did it matter what this person thought? She shouldn't be held down just because of this one person. She shouldn't have to structure her life around the feelings and opinions of one person. She had to get her life back before this person caused her more strife. But how was she to do that when that person's role in her life gave her something important? Growling, she turned off her computer and threw herself on the couch. Sleep was long in waiting, but she welcomed it because it helped her escape from her problems.

* * *

_Loud boisterous music blared from the speakers of the automobile. The screaming and laughter of the other passengers nearly matched the volume of the beat. The vehicle swerved from one lane to another like a tennis ball between two players. Thankfully, the streets were nearly dead because of the weather and holiday. Snow was never-ending as blankets upon blankets quickly covered everything in its path. The tires strained under the sudden turns the driver forced upon it but the speed remained slow. "SHUT UP! I CAN'T HEAR THE DJ SING!" a young girl at the tender age of thirteen roared to her friends as she tried in vain to drive straight. 'Stupid weather! The wind keeps pushing the car.' Irrational thoughts swarmed in her brain. Her bloodshot eyes tried to see pass the almost white fog of snowfall. Her friends ignored her as they chugged down more alcohol and throwing some bottles out of the window. The girl screamed for them to shut the window because snow was blowing inside and caused her to become distracted. She reached for her own bottle to take a few swallows only to see it was empty._

_"Give me another! I'm all out!" Her slurred words were meshed together. Bright lights suddenly blinded her. A bottle smacked against her head and her hands jerked on the wheel causing the car to head for the lights. Her foot was heavy and pushed further upon the gas pedal. Another sound was heard but the girl barely paid attention. Her vision was blacking out. Screams from the radio, laughter, lights, and another sound she knew but couldn't seem to place her finger on happened all at once before she felt herself flying. Exhaustion wore heavily on her person that she decided that sleep was more important. Her heavy lids closed. She only wished that whatever that sound was would just stop. Everything became black._

* * *

Tired eyes peeled open as memories from long ago assaulted her dreams once more. 'Damn.' She sat up and ran her hand over her face. Hooded eyes of remorse weighed heavily upon her as if the physical scars of the past suddenly burned upon her skin to signify their location. Shaky breaths escaped from her trembling lips. Sweat soaked her entire person. Her hands felt cold to the touch as she held her them to her mouth. Her body was going through the spasms of regurgitation. Her stomach muscles rolled as vomit traveled up to her mouth. She scrambled off the couch and ran to the toilet where she let out the contents she had consumed. The cool porcelain felt nice against her clammy skin. Flashes of the past were something she had tried to avoid, but they always found some way to find her. 'Dammit!' Several more waves of vomit made it past her lips before she ran dry and her stomach muscles ached. After what seemed like an eternity, Natsuki felt confident enough to get up from the toilet and flush it. She headed for the sink to wash her mouth out then brush her teeth. The lingering acidic taste still left a dominant flavor that Natsuki headed for the kitchen to drink some orange juice.

She glanced over at the clock to see that it was nearing ten at night. Christmas was tomorrow. She still felt exhausted, but she didn't want to have that dream again. Stores are probably closing late to get that last yen. 'I wonder if that includes restaurants.' She grabbed her keys and wallet before heading out. She didn't care; she just needed to get out and have her mind clear. The freezing wind greeted her instantly the moment she stepped out. Snow fell and the sound of civilization surrounded her. In her rush, she had forgotten to grab a coat, but she didn't want to go back. 'I'll just bear with it.' She stuffed her wallet and keys in her pockets before walking in the direction of Viet. Thankfully; she still kept on her hoodie over her long sleeve shirt and boots. The cold helped distract her mind from thinking too deeply She kept her eyes forward and avoided any sort of eye contact. People were bustling all around her the closer she got to the restaurant.

Christmas music rung from the speakers on the streets and decorations littered everywhere. Natsuki practically felt like she was inside either a Christmas card or a snow globe. The soft crunching sounds of her boots crushed the snow underfoot. She was looking for the familiar neon sign alerting customer of its existence in hopes it was lit. To her surprise and relief, the neon light was brightly shining almost blinding her. Before entering, she looked at the store hours and was grateful to see that it would be open for another hour. Stomping her boots to relieve them of the excess snow she stepped inside to be greeted with instant warmth like a hug from a mother welcoming you home. The smell of pho hung heavily in the air that caused her stomach to growl. "Welcome! Please sit wherever you like!" A waitress greeted me as she was serving a couple. The place was packed much to her displeasure.

She shuffled herself further into the place to find a lone table, which was easier said than done. Somehow, she managed to locate one near the kitchen. The constant opening and closing of the swinging door was a never ending movement. Usually such things annoyed her, but today, she made the exception for it kept her mind off more sensitive topics she'd much rather avoid. After delivering her order, she calmly sipped on her tea. Her eyes were still a bit too wild from the nightmare she experienced. She ran her hands over her face to warm up her frozen cheeks and in vain to wipe away the memories that haunted her. So engrossed with her thoughts, she didn't realize that someone sat opposite of her and patiently waited for her to take notice.

A heavy gloved hand rested on the flat surface of the table while snow covered boots sloshed ice all over the floor. The person used their other hand to take off their hat and run their fingers through their hair. After tossing the hat onto the table did Natsuki snap out of her thoughts. A prepared glare greeted the uninvited company across from her only to vanish. "What are you doing here?" Natsuki's eyes widened in surprise and a sense of comfort enveloped her. A smile greeted her as warm eyes twinkled in amusement.

"Merry Christmas, Natsuki!"

* * *

**AN: Sorry for the late update and the short chapter. No promises, but I will try to update the next chapter faster and longer. I have just been busy lately and hardly had a lot of free time.**


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